Moonlit Dreams
by jackswoman
Summary: This is my take on the cinderella tale for the cat returns. yes there's a prince, but the ending is a little different than what you'd expect.
1. Chapter 1:Wish on a star

A shaft of moonlight illuminated a lonely figure sitting on a window seat by an open picture window. She stared up at the night sky, her eyes searching the heavens hoping someone else was looking there too.

"I wish that I could find my true love. I wonder if he's out there somewhere," Haru sighed as she pulled the throw closer around her shoulders.

After a little bit longer Haru got up and closed the window, locking it. Folding the blanket she slowly climbed the stairs to her room making sure to be extra quiet; she couldn't risk waking her stepmother and stepsisters, they would scream the house down if they found her up at this time. _Well I better get up to bed I have to be up in a few hours to start my chores,_ Haru thought yawning.

X X X X X X X X

A figure in the shadows watched Haru as she went upstairs to the attic where he knew she slept. Watching the curtained window he waited until the light went out, to move from his hiding place and slowly made his way home.

"I hope she'll be okay, she was up awfully late tonite," he murmured aloud.

"Who was up late?" a voice said from somewhere above him

"Toto what are doing up there, eavesdropping on a person's private thoughts?"

The large black crow landed on the path before opening his beak to answer.

"Your mother sent me to find you," Toto said ruffling his feathers in an agitated manner.

"Why?"

"She's worried about you and all these jaunts you've been going on lately," Toto replied walking next to him," Have you been spying on that girl again Baron?"

"That is none of your business, Toto."

Before Toto could open his mouth with another retort Baron waved his hand and Toto could not open his mouth; the Baron had muzzled him before his headache could get any worse.

_Thank goodness now I can walk the rest of the way home in peace. _The Baron walked the rest of the way home in silence gazing up at the stars thinking about the lovely young woman he's been watching.

**Well here's the first chapter of my new fic. I just watched this anime and have always wanted to write one about it. I would just like to thank Yarningchick for the great idea……so please review. The next chapter will be out shortly, I'm still working on it**


	2. Chapter 2Dress shopping

"Haru, Haru get down here!" a shrill voice echoed through the house

Haru was upstairs picking up her stepsisters' rooms when that shriek of her stepmother's made her ears twitch in annoyance. _What did she want now, _she wondered rushing downstairs to her stepmother's summons.

"Yes milady," Haru said breathlessly bowing to her stepmother.

"It has come to my attention that the prince will be having a ball three nights from now," her stepmother said puffin out with great importance," The invitation arrived just a few minutes earlier."

_So this is what the rush was all about_, Haru thought. _I wonder what she wants me to do; I'm not just here to stand around collecting dust. _Her stepmother's words kept going over her head until the words "shopping for new dresses" brought her back to reality.

"Whaaat?" Haru asked shaking her head to clear it

"You heard me girl. Now get the girls ready to leave for town in twenty minutes, not a minute later," her stepmother ordered her and went to her rooms to prepare herself.

_Nice, just what I wanted to do today, carrying packages for my spoiled step-siblings, _thought Haru climbing the stairs once again. Before long Haru had both of her stepsisters dressed in their outdoor things and out the door.

Lucky for her the carriage ride to town was uneventful and surprisingly quiet. This did not bode well because when her step-family was this quiet something bad was going to happen.

X X X x

"We'll take this one, this one, ooh and these too," her stepmother said throwing various gowns and accessories at the bewildered salesperson,"Pack these up will you."

"Yes maam," said the delighted salesperson, his ears twitching in excitement thinking about the huge commission he was going to get.

"Haru grab those packages and get a move on will you," her stepmother said snapping her fingers impatiently.

Rushing forward Haru grabbed the stack of packages and followed her step-family out the door. _Goodness these packages are heavy, well at least I can still see over these, how much worse can it get. _FAMOUS LAST WORDS.

A Few hours later….

"Hurry up Haru you slowpoke!" her stepsister called over her shoulder

"I'm coming madam," Haru said breathlessly, hurrying to catch up.

"So sorry," she said as she brushed against someone in her rush.

"No trouble," the Baron said absently until he saw show it was," no trouble at all."

With a smile curving his lips he set off to follow her, his tail swinging in amusement. He knew just the right shortcut and no one would dare recognize him in this peasant garb.

Her stepmother and stepsisters were inside yet another store and unfortunately were taking their time so Haru was outside patiently waiting for yet more packages to be added to the already heavy stack. She set the staqck down, stretched, and walked over to the fountain to relax for few moments, while she had the time. Staring into the clear water of the fountain Haru let her mind wander.

"Haru, Haru! Where have you gotten to girl?" her stepmother's voice could be heard shouting

_Uh-oh_ Haru thought quickly dusting herself off and running to the dressmakers.

"Ooof!"

Arms wrapped around her while a deep voice asked her if she was alright. Her head was buried in a distinctively male chest that smelled like tea with a hint of sandalwood cologne.

"Miss, did you hear me?" the voice asked her again

She nodded her head slightly, her face burning from embarrassment still hidden in his shirtfront. His hands gently pulled her away to see if she was okay.

"I'm fine Mr. er…" Haru said stammering still not looking him in the face.

Baron started to say a name when he noticed Haru's ears and tail twitching in an agitated way. Looking around he say what was causing her to act this way and then he heard it.

"Haru, what have I told you about talking to strangers," a shrill voice said "and not a very well dressed one at that."

Her stepmother looked at him like he was something she scraped off her high priced shoe. Then she looked at Haru, narrowed her eyes, and snapped her fingers, pointed at the boxes; Haru quickly went from the safety of his gaze to the stacked boxes. When she went to pick them up, he went over to help her, so she could balance them easier.

"Hurry along Haru!"

"I'm coming madam. Thank you for the help sir," Haru said to Baron.

"My name is Lucien, but you can call me Luc," he said before she could run," If you ever need help just snap your fingers if you know what I mean."

She laughed at that little joke, her eyes sparkling with amusement. This in turn made him smile as she turned to catch up with her step-family. When she was out of range his smile faded, _well this family of hers was certainly different._

He walked back thru the market planning his strategy.


	3. Chapter 3: Unplanned meeting

After that unfortunate or as Haru thought fortunate incident she was banished to her attic room for the rest of the day. This gave Haru plenty of time to think about the handsome gentleman she bumped into earlier today. His touch was so gentle, like a butterfly. _No one have ever touched me like that before with such concern for my well-being._ She walked over to the mirror above her dresser and gazed into it.

"Well nothing out of the ordinary here to have someone like that to pay attention to a girl like me," Haru mused turning this way and that in front of the mirror.

_Lucien…will I ever see him again _Haru wondered, _nah_, shaking her head that handsome man will never show his face to me, I'm just a plain cat that's a servant in her own home. He was just taking pity on me because I was clumsy.

"Haru ! Haru get down here!" her stepmother's voice carried up the stairs

I wondered how long my isolation was going to last, not even an hour has gone by. Haru raced down the stairs to see what her stepmother wanted her to do now; she found her tapping her foot impatiently on the floor.

"Well, it took you long enough," her stepmother said her tail lashing behind her.

"So sorry milady it won't happen again," Haru said curtseying and keeping her eyes averted.

"I should hope not. You should just be greatful that I let you stay here. After all I did promise your father on his death bed that I'd keep the whole family together," her stepmother said dramatically putting her elegant hand to her forehead.

"Yes, maam."

After this little bout of theatrics by her stepmother, said person gave Haru a list of chores to do for the next day; mind you this list was three pages long. Then she was sent back to her room without the benefit of even having a scrap to eat.

When she closed the door to her room Haru finally got a look at the "list" she was handed. _This is going to take me all day, _she groaned.

"I might as well go to bed now so I can get an early start," Haru sighed getting herself ready for bed.

She doused her candle, got into bed, and went to hopefully a dreamless sleep.

X X X X

_Hmmm she went to bed early tonite_ the Baron thought from his hiding spot within the treeline.

"Well I might as well head home."

He walked home with a longer stride than usual, so it wasn't long until he reached the doors of his home. Just as he was handing his cloak to one of the many servants in the household he heard the clattering of heels on the floor announcing the arrival of his mother.

"Humbert Lucien where have you been?" his mother asked

"Well mother…" he began.

"It's that girl again isn't it? Isn't it?!"

"Mother can we talk about this over a cup of tea? In the study perhaps?" Baron suggested ushering his mother into his study.

He closed the doors behind her, summoned a servant to bring a tea tray with that special kind of tea, and took a deep breath. The tea tray showed up not five minutes later, taking the tray he opened the door and prayed that his mother would keep the inquisition short this time.

X X X X

Haru's Dream

_She walked into the palace's ballroom gazing at all she saw. There were lots of people dancing in beautiful clothes. Feeling out of place she slowly walked over to the wall. When she got there she sat down on a chair conviently placed next to it. Out of nowhere a handsome orange cat strode through the crowd to stand in front of her._

"_May I have this dance?" he asked her, holding out his hand to her_

_She looked up startled and hesitantly placed her hand in his. He drew her to her feet leading her out on the dance floor. When she looked up at him, he had a mask covering the upper part of his face; the only thing she could see was the emerald green eyes looking at her intently. She reached one hand to take the mask off _ when…

A rooster crowed in the yard slowly bringing Haru out of her slumber.

"Lucien…Lucien," she moaned in her sleep.

She slowly opened her eyes and instead of the ballroom she saw the meager furnishings of her own bedroom. _Just as I thought only a dream,_ Haru sighed and got up preparing for the long day ahead of her.

X X X X

"Well that worked out wonderfully," the baron's mother sighed with satisfaction.

What her son didn't know was that she sent Haru and her son the same dream so they could meet face-to-face; for a little mystery she added a mask to her son's features. When her son explained what was going on she could see the passion in her son's eyes, realizing that her son was truly in love with this girl. She decided to do something about it, hence the dream.

X X X X

Lugging the basket of laundry Haru went to the river near her home. _This was going to take forever, _she thought looking down at the basket. Shaking her head she lifted the clothes and started to wash them, not knowing that someone was watching her from the shadows.

The sun beat down on her back as she scrubbed the clothes on the washboard she brought with her. Standing up she stretched and wiped the sweat from her eyes before she bent down once more to gather up the wet clothes.

"If I ever need him…snap my fingers. What a ridiculous notion," Haru mumbled to herself.

Just for the heck of it she did snap her fingers. When nothing happened, _oh well_ she thought and went to pick up the basket. The basket was awkward and heavy, she almost dropped it when a pair of hands took the load from her.

"I told you all you had to do was snap your fingers," the familiar voice chuckled.

"Lucien what in the world are you doing out here?"

"I told you to call me Luc, Miss…"

"Haru, my name is Haru."

"Well pleased to meet you Miss Haru. If you don't mind I'll help you with this and walk you home."

"Thank you very much Lucie..I mean Luc," Haru said smiling.

He offered her his elbow and walked her all the way back to her house. Setting the basket down beside the door he looked almost expectantly at her. She had turned her back so she didn't notice him coming up behind her.

"Can I be of any further assistance milady?" he said

She jumped a few feet in the air "I thought you left."

"No, I thought you could use my company while hanging the wash up."

"Sure," Haru said blushing.

They took their time hanging up the clothes and before long they had everything hung up. She wished that this would last forever, but unfortunately it didn't and he would leave soon. Her head took a sudden droop at this thought and looked away from him.

"Hey what's wrong miss twitchy tail?" Lucien teased lifting her chin looking into her eyes

"Nothing," she said softly still not looking him in the face.

"Okay if its nothing than I had better get home."

She nodded her head afraid to open her eyes for him to see the sheen of tears there. He place a gently hand on her face caressing her. The feel of his furred hand caused Haru to nuzzle into it with such a look of contentment on her face.

"I really have to go now okay. I'll see you again Bright eyes," he said placing a chaste kiss on her cheek before he ran off into the trees.

Haru waved until she could no longer see his figure. _He reminds me of someone I met in a dream_, she dismissed that thought and went to finish her chores.

**Well here's the third chapter. Thanks for all the great reviews. As you can see I've got a lot of time on my hands, I even added the mask from the movie to give it a little bit of flair. Hope you enjoy, and please review.**

_hana_


	4. Chapter 4: Interlude wPrince Lune

"But father having this ball is a ridiculous idea," Lune shouted at his father

"But father having this ball is a ridiculous idea," Lune shouted at his father

Lune's father was used to these "tantrums" of his son's and just ignored him.

"Why is it ridiculous? You haven't mentioned any special girl to me and I thought that you might meet someone at the ball," his father said trying to reason with him," Tell you what if you don't meet a special person at the ball I'll let you find someone all on your own."

This sounded like a good idea to Lune so he calmed down and left his father to his other plans. Little did his father know that a special guest was already on her way, so in a way the ball would work out after all. Just a little different for he had a different plan in mind. Leaving the palace he went to a friend's place to plan his strategy. He knocked on the door and the Baron's mother opened it and ushered him inside before her son came home.

"Quickly Lune we need to get the plans finalized before Humbert realizes what we are doing," Louise hissed to him.

"Agreed."

They ducked into the library to finalize the plan they had started to finally get her son married. She couldn't wait for the grandchildren to start arriving.

**What in the world is the prince and the baron's mom plotting? Find out what when I post the next chapter, you never know what I've got planned, but it may take a bit I've got a major case of writer's block , so if anyone has any ideas leave it in the review. Thanks for reading. By the way this is a baron/haru fic if you haven't already guessed.**


	5. Chapter 5: Lune and Louise found out?

**For those confused about the species of the characters they are all cats except for Toto (he's a crow). The cats have human-like hands and bodies, but they're covered with fur. I hope I've cleared up this little snafu.**

"Lune, do you really think this will work?" Louise asked nervously glancing towards the windows expecting her son to appear at any moment

"Definitely. You said Baron was already interested in her, so there should be no reason why it can't work."

"But…"

"No buts, I personally as the prince of this land, guarantee that this plan will work," Lune concluded pounding a fist on the table.

"Mother where are you?" a voice called

_Wonderful_ Lune and Louise thought _he's home_. They quickly swept up the papers and threw them into the little writing table that only Louise used.

"Mother!"

"Hurry is that everything?"

"Yeah that's it. Shh quiet now," Lune said and they quickly sat down.

"Mother? Oh there you are," Baron said poking his head around the library door," Lune what are you doing here?"

Both Lune and Louise looked up in surprise because they didn't expect to see him.

"Humbert you scared me half to death! What are you doing sneaking around the house?" his mom asked shocked

Baron just rolled his eyes as if to remind her that this is his house and he had every right to sneak around if he wanted.

"Mom could you please tell me what's going on here?" he asked clearly indicating the slight disorder in the library," And why is Lune here, not that I'm upset, I haven't seen him in a while."

Baron seated himself behind his desk in the leather chair, that was there for that reason, patiently waiting for an explanation. He steepled his fingers in a gesture to the untrained eye to be impatience, but was actually intrigue. Sitting back he looked back and forth between his friend and his mother to see which one would fold first.

"Well I'd better get going, my father's expecting me," Lune said quickly jumping from his chair.

"Leaving so soon. I was hoping you would stay and have a little chat with me, but since you're leaving I'll just have someone show you out," Baron said moving to the bell pull.

"Not necessary I'll show myself out. Very nice to see you madam and Baron I'll see you soon," Lune said at the door and just before he left gave a discreet wink to Louise who returned it.

Baron pretended he didn't see that and just patiently waited to hear the sound of the outer door closing. He turned and faced the window pretending to admire the view; the only way his mother could tell he was agitated was the nervous twitching of his tail and ears.

"I'll leave you to your thoughts dear," Louise said preparing to leave the room.

"No, stay."

She promptly sat back down and waited for the other shoe to drop. The silence was deafening, the only sound, the ticking of the clock was driving her insane; she was willing to do just about anything to break the silence.

"Mother could you tell me what was going on in here or do I have to catch Lune and ask him?" Baron asked turning around to look her square in the eye

Louise was too stunned to speak and all she could do was stare.

"Well, do I have to chase after him or not?" his tone of voice brooked no refusal

Shaking her head Louise proceeded to tell her son what was going on.

"Sweetheart we just want you to be happy," she implored reaching for his hands.

The look on her face was so amusing to Lucien that he had to fight to keep a straight face. Unfortunately he couldn't keep it any longer and a chuckle spilled over.

"So this was all a plan to get Miss Haru and myself together?" he finally spit out," This explains the dream I had last night. I thought I felt your magic."

"You did dear. I just wanted to give the two of you a taste of the night to come."

"Mother I hope you're not talking about the ball tomorrow night."

"Not at all dear. Well I'll see you later," getting up she kissed his cheek and left the room.

_She left without so much as a peep, I wonder what she's up to, _Lucien thought. Sighing he sat behind his desk and started on the paperwork he'd been neglecting for days.

_Thank goodness he didn't question me too much otherwise the surprise will be ruined, _Louise thought with a sigh of relief. _This is going to take some time to get everything put together if I want this plan to work. _Scurrying off to her rooms Louise set off to get everything ready for tomorrow night.

_I just can't wait to see their faces, _Louise clapped with gleeful joy.

X X X X

While Louise was putting her plans into motion a carriage was swiftly making its way towards the palace. The occupant within was quivering with anticipation. Her arrival was to be a surprise.

**Who is this new person, could it be Yuki finally making her appearance? Thank you for all the great reviews: Yarningchik, Quickstar, Penny3 (I hope I answered your question), Elvin Magi, and Thundercat, I really appreciate them. Hope you like the new chapter.**


	6. Chapter 6: Ball countdown

"But father having this ball is a ridiculous idea," Lune shouted at his father

"Haru, Haru get over here!" her stepmother's voice called echoing through the house

_What could she possibly want now._ Dropping the clothes she was mending Haru scurried to her stepmother's summons.

"Yes madam," Haru said bowing.

"It took you long enough. What were you doing?"

Her stepmother's eyes glowed with a malice that Haru had never seen before and her tail was lashing with a ferocity never seen. It scared Haru.

"J…j…just taking care of the mending," Haru stammered not meeting that gaze.

"Leave that for now I've got something that needs your attention. Follow me."

Keeping her eyes on the floor Haru followed meekly behind. _I wonder why she's being so secretive. _Before she knew it they stopped in front of a huge door.

"Haru I need you to scrub down the carriage so its in perfect condition for tomorrow. Then I need you to make a few adjustments to the gowns I bought for myself and the girls. So get to it," her stepmother commanded as she regally swept through the door.

_This is going to take forever_, Haru thought looking at the grime encrusted carriage. Sighing Haru gathered up the supplies and got to work. _Where did they go to it __this__ muddy, they must have hit every mud puddle from town, _Haru thought scrubbing. Fortunately for Haru the job only took an hour; wiping the sweat from her brow Haru gathered her supplies and went back into the house. After putting those things away Haru prepared to get to work on those atrocities her stepfamily call ball gowns.

X X X X

"What is she doing now?" Toto asked Baron

"I have no idea, those are dresses aren't they?" Baron questioned Toto

They were outside the house keeping an eye on Haru so they saw her scrub that carriage till it gleamed and now while she was trying to fix "ball gowns".

"I think so. Though they don't look like any I've ever seen. Do they even have that colour in nature?" Baron chuckled at the one gown Haru was working on.

Time passed quickly for the two spies and before they knew it the sun cast a silhouette into the trees. Toto noticed this and started to tap Baron's shoulder.

"Hey shouldn't we get going Baron? She'll be fine tonite," Toto pleaded," Don't worry you'll see her soon enough at the ball tomorrow."

Toto grabbed the Baron's arm and dragged him back home.

X X X X

" They should be back any minute," Louise said to herself as she looked into her crystal ball," Thank goodness all the preparations are in order for tomorrow."

Louise was bouncing in her excitement, the carriage was arranged, Haru's gown was already made, and everything else could be brought up with just a snap of the fingers. _Yes by tomorrow night I will be introduced to my future daughter-in-law, _Louise thought gleefully clapping her hands.

X X X X

_These dresses are hopeless, _Haru thought as she worked on them. As the light faded Haru lit candles so she could finish whatever work she could do on the gowns.

It was well past midnite when Haru had put the final touch on the gowns. Yawning Haru blew out the candles and went to bed.

X X X X

**Sorry its been a while since I've updated, I've had a touch of writer's block and I've also started another story.**


	7. Chapter 7-The ball

Chapter 7

"Haru, Haru get that lazy tail of yours out of bed!" her stepmother's voice echoed through the house

"Ugh it's too early…" Haru mumbled rolling out of bed.

"Haru!"

"I'm coming, I'm coming."

Luckily Haru went to bed dressed so all she had to do was slip her shoes on before rushing downstairs. Her stepmother looked like steam was coming from her ears.

"Yes, madam," Haru said keeping her eyes firmly fixed on the floor.

"What took you so long? The girls need help getting ready and when you're done you can help me," with that she turned on her heel.

_This is going to take a while,_ Haru thought as she took the stairs two at a time.

Six hours later…

"Have fun," Haru called as the carriage rolled out of the driveway towards a brilliantly lit castle.

She closed the door and prepared herself to face the mess her stepfamily left behind. Clothes were strewn everywhere along with shoes, ribbons, and perfume bottles. Heaving a sigh Haru got down to business and began cleaning up the mess, knowing in the end it was worth it just to get a few hours respite from them.

X X X X

"Okay, they're gone. Let's get this show on the road," Louise said motioning to her driver.

She pulled up to the front of the house and had her footman knock on the door.

"Who could it be at this hour?" Haru mumbled going to the door

A knock came again, "I'll be right there. Hold your horses," Haru called on her way to the door.

She opened the door to find a gorgeous carriage stopped at the door and a finely dressed man opening the door, helping out a woman with regal bearing. Out of reflex Haru dropped into a curtsey and kept her eyes lowered, as a good servant should. A gloved hand lifted her chin up, so she was looking into a pair of teal eyes that were sparkling with amusement.

"Well my dear aren't you going to invite me in?" the strange woman asked," My name is Baroness Louise Von Gikkingen by the way."

"Yes a…of course my lady," Haru stammered, standing aside to let her walk in.

"Enough with the 'my lady's' Haru. You can call me Louise or…Never mind you can call me Louise, I don't really stand on formalities. Now, let's get started, you can't be late for the ball."

_How did she know my name_, Haru wondered.

"But, my… Louise I'm not going to the ball, I don't have a…"

"Shh, shh nonsense dear. Now let's get you dressed," Louise said moving her to the drawing room.

"But…"

"No, buts this won't take, but a moment."

Louise walked around Haru, studying her and muttering. Her eyes lit up and she waved her hands.

A flash of light blinded Haru and when she could see again she felt a heaviness on her neck and a coolness on her feet.

"Why don't you have a look in the mirror? I think I outdid myself."

As Haru walked she heard a rustling sound and finally saw that she was wearing an emerald green gown with an emerald drop pendant and glass slippers!

"What?!"

"Well now dear, let's get you to the ball," Louise said walking her out the door.

a/n: Even though I say "man" and "woman" all the characters are people with cat features like the Baron. Please read and review


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